District Attorney Vern Pierson announces the
conviction of Matthew Daryl McPheeters of three felony counts of possession and
under the influence of methamphetamine while armed with a firearm and six
misdemeanors counts, including possessing a loaded firearm in a vehicle and
possession of high capacity magazines.

Yesterday, an El Dorado County jury convicted
McPheeters after a three day trial by Deputy District Attorney Miles Perry concerning
two separate incidents. In July 2015, the defendant was arrested in the Raley’s
Shopping Center in El Dorado Hills for being under the influence of
methamphetamine, and after searching his vehicle deputies found a loaded
Kel-Tec SU-16 semi-automatic rifle along with three thirty round high capacity
magazines. In September 2015, the
defendant was stopped again in his vehicle on Highway 50 near Shingle Springs
for expired registration tags. The Defendant was again arrested for being under
the influence of methamphetamine and during another search of his vehicle
deputies discovered methamphetamine and a loaded Mossberg 500 12 gauge shotgun.

District Attorney Vern Pierson commented, “This
case is another unfortunate example of the increase in crime we have seen in El
Dorado County related to Proposition 47, the 2015 ‘Safe Neighborhoods and Schools
Act’ which released thousands of criminals from prison and reduced many drug
related felonies to misdemeanors. And, it is also a very good example of how
crimes that appear very low level at first, like an expired registration tag,
can often reveal very dangerous crimes related to possession of firearms by
someone under the influence of methamphetamine.”

The case is scheduled for further proceedings
concerning sentencing before the Honorable Kenneth Melikian in Department 2 of
the El Dorado County Superior Court on March 28, 2016.